At the time Odu’a Investment took off in 1976 as an offshoot of the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation, its investments were over 60 in number. Then, the company had investment in a wide spectrum of economic activities that integrated textile mills, breweries, commercial banking, insurance business, real estates, livestock rearing, fisheries services, carbonated drinks, food and beverages industries, chemical and mechanical industries, hotel and catering, vehicle distribution, bottling and marketing of liquefied petroleum gases, printing and publication. Today, the story has changed, with some of the investments gone.

Odu’a Investment was set up by the late Premier of the defunct Western Region, Chief Obafemi Awolowo not just to drive development and prosperity within the South West zone of Nigeria, but also to facilitate quality services for people within the region.

But 48 years after, the scope of operation of the investment company has not only shrunk considerably, most of its companies are no longer leaders in their sectors of operation. It was not the case before now.

For instance, one of its subsidiaries, Cocoa Industries Limited that was incorporated in 1965 and commenced business in 1967 was processing cocoa butter, cake and powder, and producing cocoa-based beverage alongside marketing of the products. Not much is known about the company’s production capacity at present. Also, the Airport Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos is not highly rated in the hospitality sector now.
Historical background

The journey from the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation to the Odu’a Investment started on February 3, 1976, when the then Western State was divided into three new states: Oyo, Ondo, and Ogun. Brigadier David Jemibewon became the military governor of Oyo State, while Wing Commander David Ikpeme and Lt. Col. Ayodele Balogun were appointed military governors of Ondo and Ogun states, in that order. They initially operated from Ibadan before relocating to Akure and Abeokuta.

To facilitate the smooth transition and meet the Federal Government’s directives, a State Implementation Committee (SIC) was established, comprising the three governors and key government officials. The committee’s mandate was to ensure an equitable distribution of personnel, assets, and services inherited from the former Western State. The SIC held nine meetings and reviewed 135 memoranda before it was dissolved by September 1976.

As early as February 26, 1976, the committee had begun discussing the formation of a holding company to manage the investments previously controlled by the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation. These investments, numbering over 60, spanned various sectors, including manufacturing, banking and real estate. The committee recommended establishment of a holding company with three departments: Investment Supervision, Consultancy, and Finance & Administration, all to be overseen by a managing director. The company’s board was to consist of 10 directors, with each state nominating two part-time directors.

On March 24, 1976, the SIC approved the creation of Odu’a Investment Company Limited, with an initial financial provision of N7 million from the three state governments to cover administrative expenses and existing commitments. The company was officially incorporated in July 1976 and began operations on October 1, 1976.

Since its inception, Odu’a Investment has operated as a conglomerate, with more than 70 per cent of its business focused on investments and joint ventures with multinational companies. Its initial portfolio covered diverse industries as aforementioned. In addition to its investments in various companies, Odu’a Investment owns significant real estate in prime locations such as Ikeja and Apapa in Lagos State, as well as commercial and residential properties in Ibadan, including the Aje House.

Experts x-ray the company 48 years on
Evaluating the progress of the Odu’a Investment so far, a professor of Economics at Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago-Iwoye, Ogun State, Sheriffdeen A. Tella, stated that the company has over the years served as one of the sources of fund for the states that own it but has not helped in terms of employment because it has not been expanding as expected.

Tella observed that there has been continued decline in the operation of most of the businesses in the group. “There has been pilfering of lots of the property, corruption without attendant punishment, lack of expansion, and product and operational diversification.

“The company’s current levels of operation have not been encouraging. Given its age, its contemporary globally have expanded and diversified in the global space or become mega businesses with investments in new areas like technology, oil and gas, and mineral resources, among others.

“There is no contemporary in Nigeria because regional government businesses like Arewa Group are much younger. Because the owner-states have other major source of funds, particularly from the federation accounts, they do not give the group of companies the required attention,” said the economist.

Tella doubted if there is any strategic plan for individual companies within the group and even for the group. “So, it is not possible to have growth trajectory in terms of profits, market control and market leadership. It lags behind its contemporaries around the globe,” the professor argued.

Also appraising Odu’a Investment 48 years after, a development specialist, Dr Adesina Fagbenro-Byron noted that the company as an effort by the old Western Region was essentially established as a commercial side of the government to take care of things like marketing, private sector-driven ideas, as well as its commercial assets and ventures.

“In governance, while you are developing public services and regulations, you must develop the private sector. Any society that does not develop its private sector is a society that is not serious economically because the private sector is supposed to generate the economy and employment, which was what the western regional government did then.

“And the objective was for and in the best interest of the South West region, particularly as it was to provide economic impact, drive economic and financial inclusion by creating jobs and attract investment to the region. Another reason for its creation was strategic focus of aligning the region with national goals. We did not start up by wanting to lead the way but we led the way eventually. It was an opportunity for innovation and growth,” he said.

Fagbenro-Byron noted that at the time the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation was established, there were other counterparts in other regions, in the east and north.

“Ironically, it appears that only the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation transformed into an asset base over the years as Odu’a Investment with several companies under it,” the specialist stated.

He added that while Ibadan was the capital of Western region, a lot of its commercial activities were in Ikeja. “To be honest, it has built assets, a lot of assets. Whether those assets have given returns as they need to is another kettle of fish.”

He maintained that the company over the years has created some economic impact. “Even the national context in which the company was created has changed; trade policies, investment policies and banking policies have changed between the time it was set up and now.

“We were under a totally different constitution, compared with now. If you look at when the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation was set up, you would realize that the resource control was on a different scale, compared with now. Revenue allocation was on a different scale.

“Granted that by the time it changed to Odu’a Investment, things had changed. So, you have to look at the environment in which the conglomerate operated. Nigeria itself was at par with Singapore in 1960 when the company was created, but is Nigeria at par with Singapore now?

“So, if the entire Nigeria cannot perform, what do you expect of a component of Nigeria, especially as the constitution of the country makes the regions subservient, so the regions cannot grow beyond the country. This is why some have called for constitutional restructuring that will allow the components to grow, though will not grow out of Nigeria but will grow sufficiently to help Nigeria to grow.”

At the time the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation transformed into Odu’a Investment, most of its companies were industry leaders in the sectors where they operated. That is no longer the case. The Airport Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos cannot be among the top-ranking hotels in Nigeria now, just like its cocoa company is not even heard of, let alone producing chocolates.

Fagbenro-Byron observed that aside national policies and changes in regulations, competition also affected the Odu’a Investments.
“But it also goes to management and strategy. There was little competition when Odu’a Investment started, but now the competition has increased. You mentioned Airport Hotel. When you enter Airport Hotel today and Sheraton Hotel you will see the difference. There are other small hotels within Ikeja that are better than Airport Hotel. There is infrastructure deficit. The states depend on federal allocation for several things and one of the problems is due to limited autonomy.”

According to the expert, at the time Odu’a Investment kicked off, there were economic and industrial activities built across states that the company was overseeing. Rather than grow over time, things have diminished drastically. In line with the founders’ philosophy, it is expected that Odu’a Investment would have built industries and huge economic activities across the states.
Fagbenro-Byron noted that one of the things the Western State Industrial Investment and Credit Corporation did was to create economic activities around provinces, but those have been lost. To him, the Odu’a Investment has retained some of its assets and lost some, it has actually retained quite a number and created more.

“Across the region, there were farm settlements, with cattle ranching. The kind of cow in the South West was different from the ones from the north. “When the military first came, a number of these assets were seized and when the regions were split into states, they lost the regulatory capacities and skills. For example, Mr. Abayomi, the father of the present Commissioner for Health in Lagos State, was in charge of agriculture in the Western Region but he was from Lagos and was living in Ibadan.

“We have other people like him in charge of these assets who have structural understanding and institutional memories but as soon as we created the states, everybody went into their places, telling others to return to their places. Nobody cared or gave it a priority to think of the assets that we jointly owned. The best was for Odu’a Investment to look after those things, which is subject to the governors and pressures from within the state.

“You will, of course, lose some of the institutional memories and frameworks. This is why one of the policies of this government, which is having regional development commissions to look after regional issues, environment, health, and infrastructure, is a welcome development.

“Some of these investments failed because of infrastructure. For instance, you grow cashew in Eruwa, Oyo State and the plan is to transport it by rail to Lagos and to the port, yet there is no direct access from Eruwa to Lagos through Abeokuta. So, to move it, the farmers have to go to Ibadan first before coming to Lagos, which is infrastructural nightmare. Some of the infrastructural frameworks that held the region were taken away over time.

“No doubt, it will first go down before it goes up, but Odu’a Investment has been able to consolidate. Nation building is not easy, it takes deep thinking, planning and allowing things to run over time. When the military started coming in and going out, a lot of the institutions were damaged,” Fagbenro-Byron lamented.

On his part, another economist, Ayo Teriba noted that when the Western Region was taking these initiatives, the regions had autonomy, as they controlled the resources and only remitted some to the Federal Government. “So, agricultural and industrial policies, most policies were driven regionally. Many of the projects that were embarked on then by the Western Region were innovative and pioneering. There are footprints. For example, in real estate, the Cocoa House, was the first skyscraper in West Africa. It is still the tallest building in Ibadan. The biggest hotels you find in those days were government owned. They also built guest houses.

“We are talking of an age in which government did not seat back waiting for tax revenue. Then, the government acted like governments are acting in Dubai, where government real estate is as competitive as private real estate, same as tourist locations, if not even more competitive.

“The biggest names in terms of projects out of Dubai are government projects. We should not just be asking what has happened to Odu’a Investment that was created by a regional government that is now defunct and lost much of its power over industry and agriculture to the Federal Government.

“The military government fragmented the then Western Region into states. And individual states now should be questioned, asking them why is it that much of the initiatives driven by government in those days are now driven by private investors, and governments are mere tenants in private hotels when they want to host events, and tenants in private real estate.

“What have the states added beyond superintending over what they inherited from the Western regional government? What new things are they doing?” Teriba asked.

Rather than jointly empowering the Odu’a Investment to maximise economic scale as a regional body, the states set up their own investment companies. The states now have their own investment schemes independent of Odu’a Investment.

“Rather than do new things on the platform of Odu’a Investment, they are doing things on their own, the state investment corporation, Ibile Holdings, for instance. If each state has its investment holdings, is there a handshake with Odu’a Investment?” Teriba wondered.
He, however, maintained that there is nothing wrong with having state holding companies. “Are there opportunities for beneficial handshakes with Odu’a Investment? It will be nice to see states acting the way Western Region acted over production, real estate, developing places, hotels, industrial and housing estates that are well managed. It will boost the revenue available to the states and the living standard of the people.

“They will not be waiting for tax revenue because they are getting the most out of the assets that they have. The model that is worth recommending to the state is that they keep the legacy of Odu’a Investment.”

On the shrinking industrial activities of the company across the South West states, Teriba stated: “You will recall that in the days after independence, Nigeria enjoyed a very strong national rail network that made industrialisation possible. Places like Kano and Kaduna also became industrial hubs because the trains arrived there. So, it was not just Lagos, Ota and Agbara, it was also Abeokuta, Ibadan, Osogbo because the presence of rail transport meant that the distance to the coast was zero. All you have to do is put it on the train and it will get to the coast at next to no cost.

“So, the collapse of the rail meant that sooner or later the industrial installations far away from the coast were going to collapse. Ibadan is now a ghost of its former self as an industrial enclave. It is the same story for Kano, Kaduna and other places that used to thrive because the trains were arriving there. But now the trains do not arrive any more. That explains why it is only Lagos and not even the whole of Ogun State. It has become too expensive to start freighting and carrying input by roads. It is not just a Western region problem but a national problem,” Teriba said.

On the way forward for a more impactful Odu’a Investment, Fagbenro-Byron suggested that the states should own a majority share and then private sector concerns within the South West should take others so that it would operate as a sort of qualified plc.

“There will also be strategic partners across the world, depending on which area. It should be operating locally but looking at itself from a global perspective. I do not know if Odu’a Investment is investing on research because for any company’s growth in this 21 century, research is critical. There are three things Odu’a Investment must prioritise: efficiency, effectiveness and value for money through creativity and innovation.

“There are examples of countries that have commercialised some services but they ran them with efficiency. We can have a family business, but we should run it as a business but not as a family,” he said.

Providing insight into the activities of the investment company, Head Branding & Communications, Victor Ayetoro, said that the inconsistent economic policies of the Federal Government during the military era significantly affected many businesses.
   
“For instance, the Structural Adjustment Programme(SAP) introduced in 1986 under General Babangida’s regime had far-reaching consequences on the Nigerian economy. The sudden devaluation of the naira and new FX policies left many business struggling to adapt. Some businesses under OICL were not exempted from these structural challenges.
   
“Additionally, during the military regimes, there was a fear of strong regional and ethnic identities. Despite this, OICL stood firm as a symbol of the South West and Yoruba identity. It is noteworthy that, among similar regional companies, only OICL survived and continues to thrive today.
  
“In recent years, OICL has demonstrated remarkable transformation, resilience and consistent growth. This transformation is evidenced by impressive metrics: a 107 per cent surge in revenue over the past decade and consistent dividend payments totaling N3.11 billion to shareholders, marking a dramatic turnaround from previous years.”
   
He added that as a dynamic conglomerate, Odu’a Investment Company Limited continues to make forays into new, profitable ventures that will not only give returns to her shareholders’ value, but create employment opportunities for young and bright graduates of various disciplines.
   
“In 2023, Odu’a achieved its first-ever credit rating – an “A” with stable outlook from Agusto & Co., underlining its strong financial position and governance structures. The rating was upgraded to “A+” 2024, demonstrating the company’s relentless pursuit of its vision to be a world-class conglomerate.” 
  
 Ayetoro further said that the company has strategically positioned its portfolio across high-growth sectors that are critical to Nigeria’s economic transformation in the area of agriculture, technology and innovation, energy, real estate and hospitality.  He also stated that Odu’a Investment commitment to corporate excellence is exemplified by its comprehensive transformation of governance structures and operational frameworks.
    
“At the heart of this evolution lies a robust five-year strategic plan, called SRC (Sweat, Revive, and Create) 2025 that focuses on portfolio optimisation and sustainable growth. The strengthening of the company’s executive leadership and a dedicated project management office has revolutionised the company’s execution capabilities, ensuring initiatives are delivered with precision and efficiency.
   
“This enhanced governance framework has yielded remarkable results, most notably achieving the first decade of unbroken dividend payments in 2024 – a historic milestone in the company’s journey. This achievement underscores the effectiveness of the company’s corporate governance reforms and their direct impact on shareholder value.
    
“Regular quarterly business reviews maintain operational excellence, while a sophisticated Corporate Governance Advisory framework ensures alignment with global best practices, fostering transparency and accountability at all levels of operation.
  
“The success of these governance reforms is further validated by the company’s growing relationships with world-renowned consulting firms, whose trustworthy signals provide independent verification of the company’s  operational excellence and investment potential. These partnerships with global advisory leaders have strengthened the company’s decision-making processes and enhanced its appeal to international investors seeking credible opportunities in the Nigerian market.
   
“Odu’a Investment’s commitment to strategic partnerships is exemplified by several landmark initiatives that combine commercial success with social impact. The addition of Lagos State as a shareholder has significantly expanded Odu’a Investment’s reach and potential while the SRC 2025 strategy continues to provide a clear roadmap for value-creating partnerships, identifying and executing opportunities that combine Odu’a investment’s deep regional knowledge with partners’ expertise and resources.”
    
Ayetoro said that the company’s joint venture with a foreign partner has birthed the Premier Legacy Hotel, which will transform the iconic Premier Hotel into a world-class 151-room luxury hospitality destination, complete with a five-star international conference centre.
   
“This development represents a perfect alignment of historical legacy with modern ambition, positioning Southwest Nigeria as a prime destination for both business and leisure tourism.
  
“In a significant move to support grassroots economic development, Odu’a recently partnered with the Nigerian Office for Philanthropy and Impact Investing through a groundbreaking Memorandum of Understanding. This collaboration aims to provide crucial funding for MSMEs across the Southwest states, focusing on critical sectors including agriculture, renewable energy, fashion, and furniture manufacturing.”